“Indeed, Allah – Mighty and Majestic – boasts to His angels on the afternoon of ʿArafah about the people of ʿArafah. He says: Look at My servants— they have come to Me disheveled and dusty.”

Narrated by Aḥmad (7089); al-Ṭabarānī in al-Awsat (8218), and in al-Ṣaghīr (575), from the ḥadīth of ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAmr — may Allah be pleased with them both.
Authenticated in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Jāmiʿ (1868); and in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Targhīb wa al-Tarhīb (1153).

Brief Explanation of the Hadith

Among the greatest days of Allah is the Day of ʿArafah — the ninth day of Dhū al-Ḥijjah — in which the pilgrims gather at that majestic standing-place, where mercy and forgiveness are manifest. It is the greatest of the rites of ḥajj, for there is no ḥajj for the one who does not stand at ʿArafah, as the Prophet — may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him — said: “Ḥajj is ʿArafah.”
Among the indications of its virtue and the magnitude of its rank is his statement — may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him: “Indeed Allah — Mighty and Majestic — boasts before His angels on the afternoon of ʿArafah about the people of ʿArafah…” Allah, Exalted is He, manifests to His angels the excellence of His servants who stand at ʿArafah — those who have come stripped of worldly concerns, humbled and imploring. He praises them and boasts of them before His noble angels, as an expression of His love for them and His pleasure with them, due to what He sees of the sincerity of their devotion, the intensity of their humility, and their utter submission before Him.
It has also come in another narration that He draws near to them — a nearness befitting His Majesty, the manner of which none knows but Him, Exalted and Glorified. He forgives them, and He frees multitudes from the Fire on this tremendous day. During the afternoon of ʿArafah, Allah sends down upon their hearts such faith, mercy, light, and blessing that cannot be fully expressed.
And His statement: “He boasts about them before His angels, saying: ‘Look at My servants — they have come to Me disheveled and dust-covered’” — meaning: they have come from distant lands, responding to My call, leaving behind their adornments and the comforts of worldly life.
Al-shuʿth is the plural of ashʿath, referring to one whose hair has become disheveled — left uncombed and unwashed — as is the state of those in iḥrām.
And al-ghubar is the plural of agbhar, referring to one covered with the dust of travel, as is the condition of those journeying to Allah in obedience to Him.
Allah has loved from them this dishevelment and dust, for it arises from their compliance with His command, their avoidance of the prohibitions of iḥrām, and their abandonment of worldly adornment and luxury — all in pursuit of His pleasure.
On this tremendous day, it is recommended for the Muslim to increase in supplication, humble entreaty, and reverent submission before his Lord.
The ḥadīth highlights the virtue of humility before Allah and the lofty rank of the pilgrims.
It also clarifies the immense virtue of the Day of ʿArafah, the majesty of its standing, and the exaltedness of its station.